A HOSPITALS trust spent over half a million pounds on bank and overtime midwives last year, according to a new report.

The study, from the Royal College of Midwives (RCM), found East Lancashire Hospitals NHS Trust (ELHT) spent £587,480 bank and overtime staff.

Figures for 2016 show the trust spent £5,503 on overtime staff and £581,977 on spending for bank staff, although its bill for agency staff was £0.

The trust said it does not use agency midwives, but chooses to utilise its own ‘bank’ staff to cover leave, sickness and gaps during staff turnover.

Nationally, the RCM found NHS spending on midwifery agency, bank staff and overtime in the UK reached more than £97 million in 2016.

That is enough to pay for 2,731 full-time and experienced midwives or 4,391 newly qualified midwives, the RCM said.

A new report from the college details maternity spending in 98 per cent of NHS bodies across the UK following freedom of information (FOI) requests.

East Lancashire’s patients’ champion Russ McLean said the figures reflected pressures on maternity services in East Lancashire due to a ‘shortage of staff’.

He said: “As is the case nationally, the trust is struggling to recruit qualified staff and there are a lack of specialists who have been leaving in their droves over the years.

“More investment and more midwives is needed.

“The government’s decision to get rid of the nursing bursary hasn’t helped matters.”

Jon Skewes, director for policy, employment relations and communications at the RCM, said the figures show maternity services are ‘under-staffed’ and ‘under-resourced’.

He sad: “The use of temporary midwives to staff permanent shortages is counter-productive and smacks of short-termism when there needs to be sensible and strategic long-term planning in midwifery and across the NHS.

“It is costing more in the long run to pay agency, bank and overtime than it would if services employed the right numbers of midwives in the first place.”

Vanessa Wilson, divisional general manager for family care at ELHT said the trust has an ‘effective’ workforce strategy in place to ensure the required number of maternity staff are on duty at all times.

She said: “This includes retaining existing staff and recruiting new staff to deal with the increasing demand for services at the Lancashire Women and Newborn Centre and our birth centres in Blackburn and Rossendale.”

“The trust does not use agency midwives; we choose to utilise our own ‘Bank’ staff to cover leave, sickness and gaps during staff turnover. "

A Department of Health spokesman said there are over 1,800 more midwives working in the NHS since May 2010 and more than 6,500 currently in training.

The spokesman said: “We are clamping down on the use of expensive agency staff, saving £700 million in 2016/17 including in midwifery, and also have a clear plan to ensure the NHS remains a rewarding and attractive place to work by introducing measures to allow NHS staff to work more flexibly and balance work-life commitments.”